PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — The remains of a World War II pilot killed 80 years ago overseas are back on American soil.

And today in St. Petersburg, 2nd Lieutenant Gilbert Myers will finally be laid to rest.

But let’s go back to July 10, 1943 in the skies over war-torn Italy.

Myers was co-piloting a B-25 bomber that had just dropped bombs when it was shot down by the enemy. The plane crashed, killing Myers. In addition, the plane was not recovered.

Recently, the wreckage of that crash was found, and so were human remains. Over this summer, the remains were identified as Myers.

By pure chance, Myers’ great nephew Doug Corey and his wife were visiting the Sicily/Rome American cemetery in Nettuno, Italy in August.

That’s where his great uncle’s name has been engraved on the wall of the missing for decades.

A small rosette has now been placed next to Myers’ name. And today he will get a proper burial on U.S. soil at Memorial Park in St. Petersburg.

“This all coming to fruition and his body being identified kind of brought all those documents back into play,” said Corey. “So you can read through them and start to see kind of how people were then, you know?
“It’s amazing. They just got on a plane or they just went to war. And it was a different time, you know?”

There are more than 3,000 soldiers still listed in action in Italy during World War II.

In the past 80 years, Myers is only the 17th to be identified and brought home.